As he sees some of his fellow former players suing the NFL over painkillers, after thousands of his fellow former players sued the NFL over concussions, Carl Banks believes litigation is far from over.
Banks, a former Pro Bowl linebacker who won two Super Bowl rings with the Giants, says he sees more former players getting involved in lawsuits against the NFL.
“It’s open season on the league,” Banks told the New York Daily News. “Some of it is valid, some of it is not. The more noise made, the more attention is brought to it. That’s fine, too. That brings about change.”
Banks said he wasn’t aware of doctors passing out painkillers indiscriminately.
“I never took a shot as a professional athlete ever,” he said. “The time I played, I know for a fact that our training staff with the Giants wasn’t big on shooting guys up. I don’t think the Giants staff was reckless in that regard, randomly handing out painkillers.”
Still, many former players say their team doctors gave them painkillers without adequately explaining the nature of their injuries and the potential side effects. This litigation won’t go away any time soon.